How I Play: Together Pangea's William Keegan on Musical Motivations

Together Pangea has been around for a decade, but as their latest release, the excellent EP Non Stop Paranoia can attest, their gritty garage punk credentials are still as strong as ever.

The Los Angeles-based band formed in 2008 around the home recordings of vocalist/guitarist William Keegan, who enlisted longtime friend Danny Bengston and fellow California Institute of the Arts student Erik Jimenez to round out the material.

The trio built a lot of buzz in the Southern California area by peppering the scene with cassettes, singles and EPs and building a reputation for raucous live performances.

Following their full-length debut, Jelly Jam, in 2010, Together Pangea gained international acclaim with their sophomore LP, Living Dummy, which came out on L.A. tastemaking label Burger Records. Their profile only grew over the years by refining their sound through subsequent releases such as The Phage EP, which was produced by the Replacements' Tommy Stinson, the acoustic EP Sleeping Til Sunset and 2017's frenzied Bulls and Roosters.

Since then, Keegan, Bengston and Jimenez (who were eventually joined by guitarist Roland Cosio in 2015) have toured the world, with their own headlining runs and playing alongside the likes of the Black Lips, Ty Segall, Wavves and Alkaline Trio.

Now, Together Pangea is back with Non Stop Paranoia, a five-song collection of tracks that bring '80s-era synths and political commentary into the fold, while maintaining their gritty vibe (listen to the track "Rats" here for a perfect example).

While the thought of Together Pangea may have began on a four-track in Keegan's bedroom, it's clear that dream has come a long way, and the guys are not stopping anytime soon.

In the video above, Keegan discussed those humble beginnings on the guitar, harking back to when his father taught him how to play Van Morrison's "Gloria" as a child, how playing with others helped him grow as a musician and how he continues to challenge himself as a songwriter.

Check out Together Pangea's Non Stop Paranoia here, and if you'd like to start your musical journey, you can get a free trial for Fender Play here.